I belong to a local writing group. We have been meeting once a month for five years, and the first topic of each meeting is always a bitch session on finding time to write. This is further complicated by the fact that several of the members write for a living; as either editors or reporters.

I find it rather ironic, that, writing for hire is automatic, while finding time to write for personal enjoyment seems impossible.

In this busy world that we all live in, where do you find the time to write?

Dee-Marie

You know, deadlines do wonders for finding times to write lol. When writing is a hobby or for personal enjoyment, you have to slow down enough to write. Often, it seems that in this busy, busy, fast-paced world, finding a time to slow down is the real problem. When you finally do have a moment's reprieve, all you want to do is turn the television on or sleep, anything that doesn't involve use of the brain cells. I haven't been too successful getting myself time to write as of late, but usually it involves a sense of willpower in taking a little bit of my limited free time and just setting it aside to strictly write. I'd love to know what other people do to help find time!

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I have a small suggestion to make. It's not original with me, and I've suggested it before. Make an appointment with yourself everyday. Put it on your calendar. Do not schedule other things in that time slot. Make it as big a commitment as a doctor's appointment or a deadline. Then set your timer for 15 minutes. No more, no less. 15 minutes. Then write for 15 minutes. When the timer goes off, you have permission to stop writing. Do that for a week and I think you'll be surprised how much writing gets done. I'm doing the 15 minute rule to get my house cleaned (a major project I have going on this year) and I am amazed at how much I can get done in 15 minutes when I don't allow myself to get distracted off on anything else. I'm not doing much writing right now because I'm trying to get things straightened in my house and in my life in other areas, but I know you can get a lot accomplished in 15 minutes.

midrael - "When you finally do have a moment's reprieve, all you want to do is turn the television on or sleep, anything that doesn't involve use of the brain cells." The only time I watch TV is when I am trying to NOT us my brain cells. Seriously though If in fact you are writing for a hobby, and hobbies are suppose to be fun and entertainment try thisinstead of watching re-runs or reality shows on the tube use that block of time to write. I know people (my wife) that used to get home from work and watch re-runs of the same shows over and over again. The new stuff doesnt come on until 8 pm local time here so that was about 2-3 hours for fixing dinner and eating and after that wasted time. So just eliminate one sitcom rerun from your life and use that time to write30 minutes a day of writing for a hobbyist is a LOT of time.

Some wonderful suggestions above. I truly believe we find time in life for the things most important to us, whatever they might be. Just my simple thoughts.

It's not that I have trouble finding time to write. I have more than enough time. I just waste it. It's more a question of the wise use of time, at least for me. jon

Jon, Now there is the main problem for most of us.

I also believe that if you really want to do something, that you will find time for it. As suggested ... it is not so much a lack of time, but, instead the lack of "want" [or sometimes the fear of success] that prevents us from finding the time.

Yet, on the other side of the things, time seems to vanish so quickly of late. As if the world was rotating faster each year, each day.

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Here is what we have come up with so far ...

• Watch less TV
• Get up earlier in the morning/write late at night
• Set an alarm for 15 minutes of writing time each day
• Set a specific amount of words to write each day
• Save time for yourself each day

My theory on why the earth seems to rotate faster as you get older... It is all about perception and frame of reference... When you are 10 a year is 1/10 of your life and the summers last about 2.5% of your life. When you are 50 a year is 1/50 of your life and the summers only last about 0.5% of your life. My wife who is a HS teacher always wonders where the summers went and she swears the summers were longer when she was a child. What this has to do with finding time to write...probably nothing. Sorry for that detour.

Great deductive reasoning japes :] Don't be sorry, there are no detours, just branches in the main road :] Another reality about having less time as we grow older - "adults" have more responsibilities, commitments, excuses, fear, and guilt. All contributing to perceived [and sometimes actual] loss of time.

I think anyone with a true passion will find time for it, no matter how busy their schedule is. I was watching a favorite tv show just last night, where an artist was trying to encourage a friend of his to paint more because he liked her work and thought she could make it big and her excuse was that with a full time job, a toddler and another baby coming she had no time. his response was, basically, bullsh*t you're an artist. it doesn't matter how busy you are or what all you have to do, you have time for it, you're just wasting it. later in the same show, an author was talking to a friend who was wondering why he even bothered trying to write and the author replied by saying because as a writer you have to, you don't have a choice. writing is just as vital to us as food and air. Sometimes when you can't physically take the time to sit down and write something out, it helps to carry a personal recorder with you on your ride to work or where ever you happen to be that doesn't allow for pen and paper. Brainstorm out loud with the record button on. It doesn't matter what you say because you're the only one that's meant to hear it. My job requires that I drive between 8 and 900 miles every week, 7 days a week. I'm in my truck by myself and I spend a lot of that time brainstorming. I don't carry a recorder, but I remember what I was talking to myself about later. If I like how it goes, I make sure I find 5 or 10 minutes later in the evening to write it down even if I might not have a chance to elaborate on it for a while. It really helps. ~E.D.

I have found that using my tea breaks (5 - 10 min) and my lunch break (30min) at work gives me enough time to write either a couple of poems, if I am that way inspired, or a chapter on my ongoing saga. Who needs re-runs on TV when your characters take hold of your life and decide that it is time for them to develop in ways you have no control over. If you look at all that time in one day, you will actually see how to fit your day around your writing even if you work full time. That recorder is a great idea as something as simple as driving down a road in autumn and watching a wrinkled golden leaf flutter down from a tall tree can be remembered, not only the mental image but the atmosphere around it. It is amazing at how reading these little memories can shift you back into gear when you have a writers block too.

My job used to have me driving alot also and my best idea's used to come from that solitude. Unfortunately a lot of it was lost b/c once I reached my destination I had no time to write it down before the work questions started coming at me. My solution was also to bring along a recorder as I had been using one at home in my music room for years. I don't know why it took me so long to think of it for driving...some of my better songs came from me listening back to recordings that I did. When your mind is on cruise control your brain doesn't have time to get in the way. Of course now my drive is only about 30 minutes total for the day. P.S. The recorder idea doesn't work as well in traffic mostly on road trips though its great...unless you are one of those people that doesn't realize how angry you get when in traffic, perhaps when you hear it later you will see just how much you need to mellow out ;)

LOL! I would definitely be too ashamed to have a recording of my driving through town with all the SA minibus taxi's using the same roads as myself. It would be perfect blackmail material against me.